Nigeria - The Prospects.

A 60-day amnesty and truce in the Niger Delta began on Aug. 6 but key militant factions were divided over whether to take part and critics said it might only bring a lull in the violence. President Umaru Yar'Adua on June 25 offered an unconditional pardon to all militants who took part in the amnesty, a bid to stem the unrest which has affected the petroleum industry in recent years. Central Bank Governor Sanusi says 2009 GDP growth hinges largely on a solution to the unrest.

Jonjon Oyeinfe, former leader of ethnic rights group the Ijaw Youth Council who has been involved in negotiations between militants and Abuja, on Aug. 6 said: "It is the will of everybody to see that the programme succeeds". But noted that the idea of an amnesty originated with negotiators from the delta rather than Abuja and that it had taken two years to implement, adding: "They definitely have good intentionsbut the system is very slow, so slow that people sometimes doubt its sincerity".

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) leader, Henry Okah, accepted the amnesty terms after gun-running and treason charges against him were dropped and he was released from detention.

Timiebi Koripamo-Agary, spokeswoman for the presidential panel on amnesty, said five militants had handed over guns at the only centre to have reported so far in the oil hub of Port Harcourt. She said: "I wasn't expecting a deluge today, I expected they would come out in trickles. The big boys will send out the small boys to go out and test the waters first".

Print Get the Mag Weekly Updates